Buildin' an AR

[AMerexican]

Ok here's whats goin' on, I plan on buildin an AR shortly an Already have my lower comin. Should be here today or tomorrow. But now I'm a bit confused so I thought I'd ask how easy is it to put together an upper or should I just buy it put together? Any an All help appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Hold My Own]

Alright, since I'm not sure if we're supposed to link off forum I won't post the link. But i'll PM you a link that goes over the "difficulty" and some of the "focal points." You can probably find a step by step link online though.

 

[tkcomer]

Head on over to http://www.ar15.com/ Click on AR-15 at the top. Click on the “Build it Yourself” folder and at the top is a step by step guide to putting your lower together.

 

[hub]

If you have just a little mechanical ability you can put an upper together easily with the exact parts that you want on the rifle without double paying for the parts you intend to replace.

The downside is that there are some tools you will need and for the cost of them, even though it's not that much you may be better off buying one already assembled.

You would at least need a action block and torque wrench to put the barrel on and torque. You will also need a multi tool for the barrel nut, flash hider, extension tube, and hand guards/free float tube.

http://www.del-ton.com/AR_15_Tools_s/108.htm

Some may also come with a warranty and resale value will probably be higher for a name brand like Colt, Bushmaster, RRA, etc, than something you pieced together yourself.

 

[iamkris]

If you can assemble a kid's toy at Christmas, you are overqualified to build an AR. And I'm not just talking about slapping an upper on a lower...I'm talking about building from individual parts.

All of these at minimum have had their lower parts assembled by me. 3 of them are completely assembled from individual parts.



The AR Herd

• BOHICA A2 upper on DPMS lower, .50 BMG
• J&T 24” varmint upper on DPMS lower, 5.56x45mm
• WOA DCM upper on Rock River lower, 5.56x45mm
• CMT upper, 18” WOA barrel on AeroPrecision lower, 6.8x43mm SPC
• BCM 18" on DPMS lower, 5.56x45mm
• J&T M4-gery upper on DPMS lower, 5.56x45mm
• Olympic Arms upper on DPMS lower, 9x19mm

 

[W.E.G.]

Building an upper is fun, but you won't save much money so long as this deal is out there:
http://www.dsarms.com/DSA-ZM4-Forged-7075T6-A3-AR15-Upper-Receiver---DSZM4CBU/productinfo/DSZM4CBU/

 

[chuwee81]

+1 ^^^ i got the same deal. 13 bux shipping and got mine in 10 days.

 

[RockyMtnTactical]

http://www.ar15pro.net/2008/08/pros-of-building-your-own-ar15.html

It's pretty easy. I have built many AR15's.

 

[MrCleanOK]

You will need two specialty tools to build an upper. An upper receiver vise block, and a barrel nut wrench. The rest are common (not AR-specific) tools: bench vise, torque wrench, drift punches, mallet, wrench, etc. If you have all of the common tools you will need, and don't mind the cost of the vise block and barrel nut wrench, building an upper is worth it. If you don't plan to build more uppers in the future, or if you don't have most of the tools, it may not be worth the investment to do it.

 

[AMerexican]

Ok thanks to everyone. But now another question. Any recommendations for an upper reciever, lower parts kit, or the other upper parts (barrel, handguard, bolt carrier, charging handle, etc...) Thanks. Oh an if it helps the plan is for this to be a precision varmint rifle with 20" bull fluted barel, but i don't really like the look of the stainles ones, any suggestion? and thanks again.